Reunion - Redux
by CrossChord
Summary: Winter Schnee, a fourth year student at Atlas Academy, is chosen to compete in the 37th Vytal Festival Tournament. Here she meets Qrow Branwen, huntsman and professor at Signal Academy. With this encounter, they begin the tumultuous relationship that takes them over the 6 years leading up to the events in "Brawl in the Family" and after. A retelling of the Snowbirds fic, "Reunion."
1. Year One

*- Six Years Ago -*

" _Welcome back to the 37th Vytal Festival Tournament! We've seen the best of the best make it through the four on four team rounds and the two on two doubles rounds!"_

" _Now it's moment you've been waiting for! The singles rounds!"_

" _Yes! These talented students have made it through each of the other two rounds and have now been chosen by their teammates to represent them in these final matches. As you know, instead of a bracket system, each match will be determined immediately before each round!"_

" _Now let's meet our first pair!"_

General James Ironwood stood above the arena in the staff box, hands clasped behind his back, his posture ramrod straight. As he looked down onto the field, his eyes scanned the lineup chosen to fight in the finals. Normally he would be in the stands with his students, the better to show himself off to the other kingdoms. However, this was the year Atlas was chosen to host the biennial tournament, and as headmaster of Atlas Academy, he needed to be on hand and available for anything that might occur.

The Vytal Festival was crucial to the peace between the four kingdoms, and this year Ironwood was determined that it would run as smooth as possible, with clockwork prescision.

His dissenters could call him what they wanted, but Ironwood knew "unprepared" was not one of those words.

As the first two contestants were announced, Ironwood heard footsteps behind him and out of the corner of his eye, spotted a familiar figure stand next to him and lean against the bar mounted on the large windows overlooking the stadium.

Without breaking his gaze from the fighting going on below him, Ironwood addressed his visitor. "How was your job?"

"Well, good evening to you too, Jimmy. I suppose a 'how are you doing this fine day?' would be too much to ask."

"You're alive, Qrow. That alone tells me you're doing well." Ironwood slid his gaze to the side and finally looked at the man next to him. "Anyway, you never answered my question."

"It went well." Qrow started to give Ironwood an in-depth recap of his mission, but his voice trailed off as he found himself drawn to the fight below.

"- _goes some of his aura! It looks like this fight will be a close one, but neither of our fighters have used their semblances yet! You are in for a treat when-"_

Qrow didn't give a damn about the young man that was competing. In all honesty, he didn't know how the kid got chosen. His attacks were weak and he needed to work on his defensive moves. No, it was the young woman on the field that caught his attention.

She was beautiful, true, but it was her form, her technique that captivated Qrow. Several glyphs appeared on the field and young woman used them to pick up speed and launch herself at her opponent. In the blink of an eye, her knee connected with her rival's stomach and Qrow grinned as he watched the poor kid double over in pain. Several arrows suddenly flew out and the young woman gracefully flipped backwards out of the way, the points not even touching her clothing as they flew by.

A smirk crossed Ironwood's face when he saw how fascinated Qrow was with the fighting. "That's my number one student down there. I wouldn't be surprised if she took home the top prize."

Qrow's brow was furrowed as he observed the fighting, his forehead practically touching the glass in front of him as he leaned forward to get a better look. "Who is she?"

"Winter Schnee. She's a fourth year student."

"Schnee?" Qrow straightened up and looked at Ironwood, his eyebrows raised in surprise. "As in Schnee Dust Company?"

"The very same one."

A laugh escaped Qrow's lips and he shook his head as he pulled out a flask. "What the hell is the heiress princess of the richest company in Remnant doing at a military academy?"

"You can ask her yourself. I can introduce you if you'd like." Ironwood turned towards the door and left the room, not looking back to see if Qrow was following. Knowing the man and his innate curiosity, he knew he would be close behind.

" _And it looks like Miss Schnee is using her summoning technique! It's...what's this? She appears to be summoning a Beowolf!"_

Qrow stopped in the aisle leading to the student seats and looked on in awe as the giant Grimm emerged from a glyph and zone in on Winter's opponent. With one swipe, the young man was thrown across the platform and against the wall. With a single gesture, the Grimm evaporated under a shower of light and Winter sheathed her sword, pleased with her victory.

" _With that, it appears Winter Schnee of Atlas is the winner of this match and will be continuing to the next round! Our next two contestants will-"_

"Qrow!" Qrow tore his eyes away from the field and sauntered over to Ironwood, who led him to the side of the field where the contestants emerged. The tall young woman with silver hair was just exiting the field and Qrow swallowed as he watched her tuck a lock of hair behind her ear.

"Winter, I'd like you to meet someone." Ironwood stopped and stood next to Winter, a proud look on his face. "This is Qrow Branwen, one of my colleagues and professor at Signal Academy. Qrow, Winter Schnee."

Large blue eyes met Qrow's and for once, he was speechless. Now that he was up close, he could get a better look at her. A form fitting top, vest, and leggings made up her combat attire, and all it did for Qrow was show him exactly what curves she had. A pair of thigh high boots completed the look, the leather encasing and showing her long legs off to perfection. Her hair was up in a high ponytail, but since Winter had been fighting, several strands had escaped. The urge to push them out of her eyes was strong and it took Qrow immense willpower to overcome it.

Normally he was Mister Suave when it came to women, but somehow, one look from this one was enough to disable him. He held out his hand and locked eyes with her. "A pleasure."

Winter took in the man before her with a cool expression on her face. Normally, she was a good judge of character, but she didn't know what to think of General Ironwood's friend. She looked Qrow in the eye for a few seconds before breaking her gaze and giving him a once over.

With her heels, Winter was the same height as Qrow, allowing her look him straight in the eye. It was hard to tell exactly how old he was, but she knew he was at least a decade older than her. Qrow was handsome, Winter was willing to admit, with some gray emerging at his temples. From what she could tell, he had just returned from a trip, judging from his rumpled clothing and unshaven face.

A pale, smooth hand grasped Qrow's and shook it, the grip firm. "It's nice to meet you, Mister Branwen," Winter replied, her eyes moving back up to meet his again. For a brief moment, Qrow felt like they were the only two in the stadium, and he wanted to laugh at the absurdity of his thought.

Instead, he smirked and slowly slid his hand out of hers, amused when a hint of a blush started to creep up from the collar of Winter's blouse. It seemed for all of Winter's military discipline and chilly demeanor that matched her name, she wasn't used to receiving attention from an attractive man that wasn't a fumbling student. Qrow knew he would have to tread lightly around her.

"Call me Qrow," he replied in a smooth voice. "And the pleasure's all mine."


	2. Chapter 2

"When do you leave for Beacon?"

"In a few days. Oz wants me back right away, but maybe I'll stay and watch the rest of the festival."

Winter's eyes moved back and forth as she followed Ironwood and Qrow's conversation. As the two men spoke to each other, she let her mind wander a bit, her thoughts leading her to compare them.

As someone who's had dealings with the Schnee family for over ten years, Winter had known General Ironwood for almost her entire life. It was him that helped her out when she was a new student at Atlas, and it was him who convinced her that her talents would be wasted as a huntress. To her father's disappointment, per Ironwood's advice, Winter signed up to join the prestigious Atleasean military,

In some ways Ironwood was almost more of a father to Winter than her own father ever was. However, the feelings she had for her superior officer were far from paternal.

Winter let her eyes linger over Ironwood as he spoke, her thoughts turning to his appearance. He was an attractive man, his features chiseled and strong. Since she was often in close contact with him, Winter got to see a side of Ironwood not many others got to witness. More than once, Winter wished she was no longer a student, and could finally let him know exactly how grateful she was for all of his assistance.

That is, if she had the courage.

On the other hand, there was Qrow, whom she just met. Winter took a sip of her water as she appraised him again. He was tall, a few inches taller than her, but shorter than General Ironwood. Qrow was also thin, yet muscular, almost like an athlete. Since he was a professor, Winter couldn't help but assume he was somewhat intelligent, and wondered what subjects he taught.

A part of her wanted to challenge Qrow to a fight, just to see that his skills were like on the battlefield. She had a feeling he would put up a good fight, and the thought of it excited Winter a bit.

"So, Winter, what are your plans after graduation?"

It took a moment for Winter to register the fact that Qrow had turned his attention to her, and was asking her a question. She snapped to attention, attempting to look as if she had been following the conversation the entire time.

"I plan on going into the military," she told Qrow, a serious expression on her face. "I get a month off before I leave for officer training for the next two years."

"Officer training?" Qrow asked, his eyebrows raised in surprise.

"Yes. I graduate at the top of my class, and General Ironwood believes that I would be a good asset to the Special Operatives unit."

Despite his general dislike of the military, Qrow couldn't help but be impressed. From what he understood, the Special Operatives unit was someone of an elite section of the military, and to be handpicked by Ironwood himself?

Qrow glanced back and forth between Winter and Ironwood, the latter smiling like a proud parent. Suddenly, he couldn't help but wonder if there was something going on between the two of them, and the prospect of that being true made him a bit angry.

It wasn't the fact that Winter was a student and Ironwood was more or less her boss, it was the thought of him having some sort of romantic relationship with her, that made Qrow feel….

Almost jealous.

The feeling hit Qrow like a boulder to his chest and took him by surprise. A part of him wanted to grab Winter's hand and drag her off in order to be alone with her. What really confused him is that his first instinct wasn't to flirt with her, to not use his usual tactics to get someone to go out for a few drinks with him, to not pull her close and kiss the hell out of her.

No, Qrow wanted to get to know Winter. Go slow with her. Find out her likes and dislikes, what her hobbies were, learn all that he could about her.

Running a hand through his hair, he looked back and forth between Ironwood and Winter. "I should get going. Hopefully there's still a hotel around here with free room." _And a bar._

"I'll accompany you. The locker rooms are on the way," Winter told him. She turned to Ironwood and saluted before facing Qrow again. "Shall we?"

Ironwood watched the pair walk off with narrowed eyes. It wasn't that he didn't trust Qrow, he didn't trust Qrow with Winter. She was a brilliant and talented student who didn't know about Qrow's….reputation. He didn't think the man would try and seduce her, but Winter was a beautiful woman and he was afraid of what might happen if she were to fall under Qrow's spell.

A sigh left Ironwood as he turned and walked in the opposite direction. At least the festival ended in a few days….


	3. Chapter 3

After an hour of wandering around downtown Atlas and growing more and more frustrated, Qrow finally managed to snag the last room in a small, slightly rundown inn that lay in what would probably be called the "shady part of town." But he didn't mind; Qrow had stayed in worse during his years of traveling Remnant.

A shower and a clean change of clothes later, Qrow was ready for a night on the town. Pulling out his scroll, the first thing he did was look up the closest bar that had a somewhat decent reputation. The one downstairs would have done just fine, but it's inhabitants made him wary, so he decided to call a taxi and head back into the nicer part of Atlas.

Stepping out of the cab, Qrow paid the driver and looked around, trying to ignore the students that pushed past him, laughing at whatever their friends said. He could see a smattering of uniforms from Beacon and Haven, but, as he expected, none from Atlas.

 _ _Jimmy must have his students on a pretty tight leash.__

With a shrug, Qrow blocked his ears to the chattering going on around him and started to walk up the sidewalk. He noticed that more than a few of the visiting students stopped to stare, and, in an attempt to catch his eye and attention, give him a flirtatious smile. Despite his reputation, Qrow wasn't into students. He was a professor; it wouldn't do to have that label attached to him.

Five minutes later, Qrow finally found a bar that was relatively empty. He wasn't in the mood to deal with nosy patrons when all he wanted to do was drink and go back to his room. A deserted table in a dim corner of the room beckoned him and Qrow quickly made a beeline to it. As soon as he sat down, an attentive server was ready to take his order.

"Scotch, neat."

"Right away sir."

A small sigh escaped his lips as he leaned back against the chair and he let his mind wander to the young woman he had met earlier.

Winter.

" _ _So what brings you to Atlas Academy? Figured a girl like you would be somewhere like Beacon."__

 _ _Icy blue eyes met his and he was taken aback by the intensity of her gaze. "You mean why would a Schnee be going into the military?"__

 _ _Qrow chuckled and stopped next to the door of the women's locker room. "Yeah, I suppose you could say that."__

" _ _I have no interest in the family business. My talents best lie with the military."__

" _ _I'm sure that must have pissed off your father."__

 _ _Winter's eyes left Qrow's and instead focused on a spot on the wall behind him. "He was...unhappy when I told him I would be giving up my claim to the company."__

 _ _Qrow resisted the urge to laugh. After his own dealings with the head of the Schnee Dust Company, "unhappy" would be putting it lightly. "From what I saw on the field, I'm sure you'll be a great asset to Jimmy."__

 _ _Winter's eyebrows raised in surprise at the unexpected compliment. "….thank you. Now if you'll excuse me…."__

The sound of glass hitting the tabletop brought Qrow back to the present and he grabbed his drink, the taste of the warm liquor calming and relaxing him. As he drank, he observed the other patrons, watching as they talked, laughed and flirted, his senses on high alert for any danger that might arise. As much as he enjoyed being a hunter, that was the one thing he disliked. The constant feeling he was being watched, always having to watch his back, wondering if anyone that walked by nursed some sort of grudge and would attack him.

"Excuse me, may I join you?"

Qrow was about to say no, he wasn't interested as he looked over at the interloper. His eyes traveled upward, over a tight blue dress hugging some very nice curves. Qrow was about to appreciate the view some more when his eyes widened and he realized who was talking to him.

"Miss Schnee. What brings you here?"

Winter sat in the chair next to him and he tried not to stare as she crossed her long legs. "Why else would I be here?"

Qrow raised an eyebrow as he took another sip of his drink. "You're a student."

"If you recall, I am old enough to drink. And please, call me Winter."

The urge to seduce her was strong and Qrow fought against it with everything he had. A professor sleeping with a student was frowned upon, and he certainly did not want the wrath of General James Ironwood to fall upon him.

However, he was a visitor to Atlas and Winter wasn't one of __his__ students. After all, wasn't she the one who asked to join him? A slow smile graced his lips and Qrow raised a hand to signal the server.

"Touché. Well then, what would you like to drink, Winter?"


End file.
